Korkmaz, Evelyn

Evelyn Korkmaz is a residential school survivor, a victim of the notorious St. Anne’s Residential School near Fort Albany, Ontario.  Evelyn’s early years did not give any indication of what she would later experience; she grew up among family and friends in her early years, but changing family circumstances led to her attending St. Anne’s, where she became a victim of physical and sexual abuse.  Her story attests to the terrible cycle of abuse that existed within these institutions:  many of Evelyn’s classmates had been abused by the clergy at the school, and this learned pattern of abuse led those students to assault the young Evelyn.  Evelyn has spent a lifetime recovering from  this, and has turned that pain into activism, demanding change and acknowledgment of clergy abuse.  She has spoken at the United Nations, and has visited the Vatican, attempting to bring her message to the pope himself.  Crestwood students were fortunate to visit with Evelyn over zoom in November 2021, with a view to taking another small step on our own ongoing path of reconciliation.